2.1 - Direct Lessons

At MMS, we kick off each new school year with The First Eight Days. This focused time gives us an opportunity to examine our paradigms, develop classroom mission statements, and review and strengthen our understanding of the 7 Habits. We developed our own middle school implementation plan before transitioning to the online Leader in Me Curriculum this year. Beyond The First Eight Days, DEN advisors follow a yearlong plan (6th Grade DEN Schedule, 7th/8th Grade DEN Schedule) to guide how and when all of our students will engage in explicit lessons. Students also have opportunities to lead lessons. For example, last year, our Student Leadership LEAD Team recognized a need and developed an action plan to help our 6th graders better understand the principles and practices of the 7 Habits. The Leadership LEAD team students worked in pairs to develop an interactive lesson for each of the 7 Habits and then taught the lesson to the rest of the team. This equipped the entire Leadership LEAD team to deliver each of the interactive lessons. They worked with each of the 6th-grade advisory teachers to schedule times to join their advisory class. By the end of the 22-23 school year, the Leadership LEAD team delivered an interactive lesson on each of the 7 Habits in all of our 6th-grade advisory classes. Our Student Academic LEAD Team also partnered with advisory teachers to assist students in understanding the “why” behind our Leadership Portfolios and to assist them in building their portfolios.